A Cornishman, raised on a Farm in Devon, he has described himself as ‘an educator by profession, diplomat by nature and environmentalist at heart’. Veryan was a Physical Education Officer in the Royal Air Force between 1980 and 1990, Olympic medalist for Great Britain (Hockey) in Los Angeles 1984 (Bronze) and Seoul 1988 (Gold). A 35-year resident in UAE, he was a Military Advisor in the UAE between 1991 and 1995 and subsequently, from a love of all things natural, set up a Dive Training School in Abu Dhabi (SCUBA Sirenia) between 1995 and 1998, with courses taught on marine environmental awareness, including underwater naturalist, photography and videography. Since 1998, he has managed over 1,000 environmental projects in the Arabian Gulf and wider region and was the principal founder of NEA in 2003, as Director and latterly CEO